I listened to PMQT today and the thought struck me that as Labour had moved to the "middle ground" it enabled the Tories to move more to the right without appearing to be more extreme. Now that Corbyn has pushed Labour back to the left and the middle ground has moved back to where it used to be it has shown up the Tory policies as being ultra extreme and callously uncaring. I don't care if Labour do not win another election but if Corbyn tempers the ultra right wing policies Cameron and his cronies are trying to push through then he is my man.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/diesel-cars-face-city-centre-ban-080500158.html#mLSZFum Apparently the government are considering banning diesel cars from 6 polluted city centres, including Southampton. Is Southampton polluted?
It has long been a mystery to me why there is such a proliferation of diesel cars. They run to very tight requirements on pollution, their particulates are carcenogenic and unless they are regularly serviced ti a high standard they belch black smoke. In comparison, the relatively easy to service and repair, less harmful polluting, if less efficient gasoline car, also drives better and has better small engine characteristics. Diesels have always been marketed for their relatively cheaper to run costs, depending on mileage, which are often questionable. And yes, Southampton has long been polluted due to its excessive traffic congestion. That's due to the geography more than anything else though.
On Corbyn not singing the national anthem, whatever his personal beliefs it was obviously a mistake. I think the biggest challenge for him will be learning to pick his battles. You can't try and fight every possible fight and hope to succeed in politics (or in any field really). PMQs was odd. An interesting change but Cameron can answer those sort of questions all day long. People may not like the rowdy scenes of the past but if things remain as there were today PMQs may become a non-event.
Well, that's me out of business then, unless I pass on the cost to my customers. They'll love that, so I'll probably lose some. It may come as a surprise but people don't drive vans for the fun of it. I drive one because there is no other way to do the job. And I drive a van that I service on the nail, so it's as non-polluting as possible. As for buses and coaches, each bus that I get on (and I travel regularly by bus; it's the most sensible way to travel into town) probably gets 15 or 20 people out of their cars. Pop a tax on them and prices will have to go up, so some people will probably go back to cars. If even one person does, that's an increase in pollution. Vin
Tbf StG, a diesel engine is suited to heavy loads and is very efficient in that capacity. A well serviced and maintained truck, heavy van or bus is best with a diesel engine or LPG. I don't like diesels but there you go. Of course, if Southampton was innovative like various cities in Europe we'd have electric/hybrid or gyrobuses, or even trams. Now where are all those old rails.?
The one thing that Southampton is unable to change is its geography - its position on the landscape. Because it is hemmed in by one major waterway [Test] all urban traffic in or out of town-west is squeezed into three main routes. Nobody can go directly south to escape. The shortest and most convenient route, that of the A33 to either the A35 or M271 is regularly choc-a-bloc with traffic. Then there is Hill Lane/Winchester Road/A35 and finally The Avenue/Bassett Ave. Going east out of town is hardly any easier as the traffic has to squeeze over another major river [Itchen]. It's no wonder people try to get on the M27 as early as possible to achieve any progress, but then that gets full too. When these major roads get choked drivers have no alternative but either sit there or go down escape routes or rat runs. Well, back in the late 1990s SCC, in its wisdom, closed off most of the rat runs in order to control traffic flow. Unfortunately, [everybody could see it coming but them] it brought traffic to an almost complete standstill. So Southampton is full of pollution hot-spots.
One for Godders: London [sadly not Southampton] are going to fit 6 prototype buses with F1 derived flywheels, which could save upto 30% of fuel. Which will cut pollution by the same. http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/apr/18/f1-fuel-saving-flywheel-buses The older ones will remember toy vehicles with flywheels which you revved up and the set them off. This isn't a million miles different.
Bacon, cabbage and mash followed by some black stuff, then some whisky. No prizes for guessing where I am.
